Oculi House / O’Neill Rose Architects
Oculi House / O’Neill Rose Architects
Text description provided by the architects. Our approach to this project was spurred by ideas of daylight, visual connection, and the intersection between the digital and handcrafted processes. We used light, view, materials, and sections to connect inside and outside and to create an experience of place.
We found a balance between every day and the unexpected through the exploration of materials and the exploitation of construction methods. We were very interested in the intersection of digital design and handcrafted construction; the relationship between digital and analog processes.
For instance, we used 3d imaging and drafting to rotate and align twelve full-size stone slabs for a kitchen wall so that the veins connect across the individual slabs to create a 25’ long floating landscape. We then printed full-scale templates and worked in the stone yard to help the artisans cut the stone by hand to create this ‘painting made of stone.’
By far our greatest triumph was using this digital and handmade approach to create the two large, irregularly curved oculi within the house’s attic space. We used 3d modeling to create full-scale cross-sections of these irregular ellipses at 12” intervals which the artisans used to create a physical formwork and then employ age-old plastering techniques to create the beautiful, sculptural voids.
Light floods through and down the stairs, joining the light filtering through the foyer and the large glazed openings at the rear to create a joyful, light-filled experience of home.
The result of our investigation is an architecture that inspires the inhabitants to explore and express how they coexist within the larger landscapes of their lives and to create a richer and more meaningful place in which to live, work, and play.
